Christmas Pastiera with Mixed Candied Fruit is a revisited dessert in a Christmas version, with many colorful candied fruits and a border of star-shaped cookies that evoke Christmas.
The pastiera is a classic Neapolitan dessert made during Easter, but in the south, it is also widely enjoyed during Christmas. Anyway, the pastiera is a beloved dessert that can be prepared all year round, and each person personalizes their own recipe.
I also have several versions on the blog, the classic with candied fruit, without candied fruit, and the chocolate version.
What’s better than baking lots of desserts, from classic to revisited, during Christmas? I love them so much, and anyone who knows me knows I’m a sweet tooth, so I don’t miss anything. So let’s bring this delicious, soft, and very inviting pastiera to the table!
At Christmas, you can…
Browse other Christmas desserts ↓
Collection of my Christmas desserts
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 1 Hour
- Portions: 6-8 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Christmas
Ingredients for Christmas Pastiera with Mixed Candied Fruit
- 3 1/4 cups All-purpose flour
- 2 Eggs (medium)
- 1 Yolk
- 7 oz oz Butter
- 3/4 cup Sugar
- to taste Orange zest (grated)
- 1 pinch Baking powder
- 1 jar Wheat for pastiera (20.5 oz)
- 1 1/4 cups Whole milk
- 1 oz oz Butter
- 10.5 oz oz Cow ricotta
- 2 Eggs (medium)
- 2 Yolks
- 3/4 cup Sugar
- 1 pinch Salt
- to taste Orange zest (grated)
- to taste Candied orange peels
- to taste Mixed candied fruit
Tools
- Stand Mixer
- Pot
- Rolling Pin
- Pastry Wheel
- Baking Pan
- Oven
- 1 Cookie Cutter
Preparation for Christmas Pastiera with Mixed Candied Fruit
Shortcrust Pastry Procedure.
Start preparing the pastiera by making the base, so prepare the shortcrust pastry first.
You can make the dough by hand or with a simple food processor or stand mixer.In the bowl of the stand mixer, place the sugar with the slightly softened butter pieces, work the ingredients for a few minutes using speed 2, add the eggs, grated orange peel, flour, and sifted baking powder.
Work the dough quickly and mix the ingredients well. Pour it onto a work surface, compact the dough by hand, form a ball, and put it in the fridge to rest for about 20 minutes.
Filling Procedure.
In a pot, pour the entire jar of wheat, the milk, the tablespoon of butter, and grated orange peel, bring to a boil and, always stirring, make a cream.Sieve the ricotta (or put everything in the stand mixer and use the k-beater to mix the ingredients well), then add the sugar, a pinch of salt, cinnamon, 2 eggs plus the yolks, pour everything into the pot with the wheat, also add the candied orange peel cut into pieces, mix well, it should result in a good soft mixture.
Pastiera Procedure.
With the shortcrust pastry dough, you can make one large pastiera or two small ones, your choice.
Take the pastry from the fridge and roll out a sheet with a rolling pin, on a piece of parchment paper, cut out a circle and line a round baking pan of about 10 inches, roll out the remaining dough and cut strips.
With a ladle, fill with the soft wheat filling, cover with diagonal strips, and cut off the excess edges, roll out the dough again, and cut small stars with a cookie cutter, placing them around the edge and in the center.
If there’s leftover dough, make some small cookies.BAKING
Complete the pastiera by adding lots of colorful candied fruits between the spaces of the strips, then transfer the pan to an already preheated oven.
Bake the pastiera in a ventilated oven at 356°F for about 45-50 minutes or 60 minutes in a static oven.For the baking, adjust according to the power of your ovens, alternating the positions of the pan, first on the lower level and then higher, when it’s golden enough remove from the oven, let it cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar.
Anna advises…
Prepare the pastiera a few days in advance, the rested pastry becomes softer, and the filling, the more it rests, the more flavor it acquires, allowing you to enjoy all the ingredients and the essence of candied orange peel.
You can customize the pastiera according to your tastes, with or without candied fruit.
Read here: All-chocolate pastiera. delicate pastiera without candied fruit – Classic pastiera
What can I substitute for the colorful candied fruit?
You can replace them with Smarties chocolates or colorful confetti.
You can replace them with Smarties chocolates or colorful confetti.
